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Windows Subsystem for Linux/WSL GUI with Kali

More featureful GUI support is coming to WSL this year, but for users of Kali there's an option available right now.

Kali for WSL comes with a GUI baked right in, but since I only just realised this I thought it was worth doing a quick post on it.

To get the Kali GUI on Windows, install WSL first – we have a guide on installing WSL 2 here: https://www.gadgethow2.com/2020/10/16/windows-10-wsl2/

Then download Kali from the Microsoft Store here: https://www.microsoft.com/store/productId/9PKR34TNCV07

Launch Kali Linux from the Start Menu and it will walk you through creating your user account.

Check for and install updates:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade

Install Win-KeX

sudo apt install kali-win-kex

Once installed, you can launch the GUI with the following one-line command (see, simple!):

kex wstart

When you’re done, press the F8 key on your keyboard and pick Exit Viewer

Jonathan Procter

Linux, Unix, and Windows server sysadmin.

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